Mise in abyme, ellipse, the most easy way to Tchekov, in my personnal case.

Excellent rendering by legendary director Louis Malle- of the Cechov classic Uncle Vanya. All the roles played convincingly yet spontaneously in the modern setting of a dilapidated theatre - mirroring Vanya’s own dilapidated life . Unlike other reviewers I did not find the theatrical approach overwhelming . A gem to be ( re) discovered .

Vanya on 42nd Street, an odd but faithful adaptation of Chekhov's play, is set in a rundown New York theater where a group of actors gather to rehearse Uncle Vanya. It's worth watching for a few reasons. It is the final directorial effort for Louis Malle, the great French director who died shortly after the film was released. The cast, featuring Wallace Shawn, Julianne Moore and Brooke Smith, all give solid performances. Above all, the play, about the complexity of family dynamics, is timeless. Out of fairness, the film is a bit wordy and may be off-putting to anyone who objects to what is essentially a filmed stage play, but it remains a fairly compelling story and should be of interest to most audiences.

This reignited my love of seeing plays. It felt like he was a contemporary of Ibsen. found our way to it after seeing the film "Drive My Car", which is based on a short story that involves a production of the play.

Vanya on 42nd Street is really just a performance of the play Uncle Vanya. It is made unique because it is presented by modern-day people in a theater rehearsing their performance of this play. Therefore, it looks current in wardrobe, but I suspect it remains pretty faithful to the classic script from the late 19th century. I was not familiar with this particular story from Chekhov before sitting down to watch the film, but that didn’t seem to be a detriment. I followed the story relatively well, mostly because of the wonderful acting of this cast. Most of them are not A-list stars of the big screen, but they clearly have some experience on the stage or with this play in particular because they all felt dialed into these performances. I guess the best compliment I can pay to all of them is that after a little while the pretense of the stage melted away for me, and I was there on the ground of that Russian estate with them. It was almost jarring when they took an act break and the camera pulled back to show us the director and spectators. It was a bit challenging at times to follow the story of Vanya on 42nd Street mostly because the dialogue is written almost like Shakespearean prose. This kind of writing, despite the fact that it’s mostly words I know, takes a great deal of concentration for me to decipher. When the film started, I was worried that I would be lulled into boredom and start to shut out what people were saying because it was too hard for me to see through to the meaning of their words. Yet, I somehow latched on when the emotions started to elevate and I could sense the feelings of each character. It all culminated in a glorious rant from Wallace Shawn that finally unveiled any remaining mystery about the story and allowed me to follow the tale to the end. Uncle Vanya is a heavy and somewhat depressing tale at the heart of it all, and I’ll admit that kind of story is tough for me to endure. While I was invested in Vanya on 42nd Street, the writing and the nature of the story kept me from loving it. However, it made me interested enough to someday seek out a stage production of this play.

Movie as a play being acted in a rundown theater in old Times Square.

With such talent thrown in the mix as Louis Malle, David Mamet, Wallace Shawn, Andre Gregory, and Julianne Moore, it's easy to see why this movie is great. Featuring excellent performances and Malle's ability to place the camera in the best place at all times, Vanya on 42nd Street is worth a viewing.

A group of actors perform Chekhov's Uncle Vanya. Andre Gregory and Wallace Shawn combined with director Louis Malle to create one of the great talk-only films, My Dinner with Andre, and now they add David Mamet translating Anton Chekhov to the mix, and the result is just as compelling. By itself, Vanya is a great character drama, and what Malle and company show is that great material requires great actors, not necessarily beautiful scenery. You probably wouldn't cast impish Wallace Shawn in the main role of Vanya opposite the younger and "beautiful" Jullianne Moore, but it works because Shawn's talent as an actor goes beyond his looks. The rest of the actors are equally good, including Moore, whose work usually fails to compel me. Overall, this is a great introduction to one of Russia's greatest writers.

good version of this

This is quite a unique way of adapting Anton Chekhov's "Uncle Vanya", with fine performances from start to finish (particularly Julianne Moore) and a perfect way for Louis Malle to leave us.

I tend not to like 16mm film; nor movies based on/about plays; nor dialogue-intensive ensemble casts. This had all three aspects.

Remarkable meta-textual reading of Chekhov with an outstanding cast.

Should be seen in a theatre for the full appreciation. This is the most original telling of Uncle Vanya that I have seen. What we are seeing is a gripping theatre performance in an unmade set without costumes and with the pleasing sounds of New York in the background. It works!

Remarkable film of a remarkable play. The pain of the story is neutralized by the delight of watching this top-flight cast playing off each other.

Outstanding production of Vanya. Mamet's translation is spot on and the performances are amazing. Shawn is outstanding in the title role. I have a rekindled love of Chekhov tonight.

One of the most sublime film experiences of my life. Perfection. A great bookend to "My Dinner with Andre."

Excellent 'casual' film adaptation of Checkhov's play... The cast is outstanding. And the concept of the film as a rehearsal for the play (in a dilapidated 42nd Street theatre) is as painfully cool, sophisticated and unpretentious as its soundtrack by Joshua Redman.

Wake up to your mermaid life.

It strips Chekhov to its bare bones and its that simplicity of the production as well as the upfront acknowledgement of the artifice of this performance and the theatre in general that makes this work so well. I also like that Louis Malle just decided to film what the actors and Andre Gregory had put together over their extensive rehearsal and improvisation process without trying to transform it into something else, because whats there is pretty damn remarkable. Its some of the very best ensemble work I've ever seen.

I could and would understand the appeal of making a film with it's interesting and bizarre setting. But with the knowledge of knowing that the play we are watching isn't real, the disillusion of reality is completely destroyed by knowing that the characters are only actors acting.